Combination bib and bag garment protector

ABSTRACT

A disposable combination bib and bag garment protector having straps configured to secure around a neck of a person, a first bag or a material collection bag located on a first side and a second bag or a material stowage bag located on a second side. The bib and bag garment includes the first side that is worn by a person to shield food and/or oral contents released by that person from garments occupying the upper torso and to collect any food and/or oral contents sliding off the first side into the material collection bag. Upon being removed from the person, rolled to a point of closure of the material collection bag, the material stowage bag is exposed and opened to create a stowage space suitable for receiving used diapers or other trash item for convenient disposal.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent ApplicationNo. 61/442,134 filed on Feb. 11, 2011. The foregoing application isherein incorporated by reference in its entirety.

COPYRIGHT NOTICE

This disclosure is protected under United States and InternationalCopyright Laws.© 2012 Donna L. Smith. All Rights Reserved. A portion ofthe disclosure of this patent document contains material which issubject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection tothe facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or thepatent disclosure after formal publication by the U.S. Patent Office, asit appears in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office patent file orrecords, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

Disclosure herein is generally directed to the field of garmentprotectors.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Infants, small children, and some compromised adults make messes wheneating. Bibs overlaid across a child's upper torso usually adequatelyshield a child's upper garment, but under other circumstances does notprotect a user's lower garments as food and/or vomit slopped onto theupper torso located bib surface often slides off and lands on thechild's pants, dress, or surrounding environment. Meanwhile for the samepersons oftentimes a diaper change and its subsequent disposal isurgently required, sometimes when such persons are also covered withbib-splattered material. The preferred embodiments solve these andrelated problems.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Preferred and alternative examples of the present invention aredescribed in detail below with reference to the following drawingsdepicted in FIGS. 1-6:

FIG. 1 schematically depicts a top view of a front side 14 of acombination disposable bib and bag garment protector 10 with a front bag18 un-deployed;

FIG. 2 schematically depicts the front side combination bib and baggarment protector 10 with the front bag 18 deployed in the open positionto create a catching volume 30;

FIG. 3 schematically depicts a perspective view of the front sidecombination bib and bag garment protector 10 with the bag 18 deployed inthe open position;

FIG. 4 schematically depicts a perspective view from the child'sviewpoint of the front side combination bib and bag garment protector 10with the bag 18 deployed in the open position;

FIG. 5 schematically depicts a top view of a back side 54 of acombination disposable bib and bag garment protector 10 showing a backbag 58 un-deployed; and

FIG. 6 schematically depicts a perspective view of the back side 54 ofthe combination bib and bag garment protector 10 with the back bag 58deployed in the open position to create a stowage space 130.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Described herein is a disposable combination bib and bag garmentprotector having straps configured to secure around a neck of a person,a first bag or a material collection bag located on a first side and asecond bag or a material stowage bag located on a second side. Thecombination bib and bag disposable protector provides a dual purposefunctionality. The disposable protector can function as a bib to keepsplattered material from reaching upper torso garments and to collectinto a first deployable bag near the bottom of the bib to collect anysplattered material that slides off the bib, thus protecting lower torsogarments and surrounding environments. This first deployable bag servesto be a waste collector, a waste catcher, or a material collection bagfor those materials that slide off the bib surface. When the disposablegarment protector is removed from a wearer or user, another built-indeployable bag, a second bag, residing on the opposite side of thedisposable protector, can serve as a waste stowage bag or materialstowage bag for other items not necessarily related to the materialsplattered on the bib—for example, soiled diapers or other wastematerials. The second bag may have a larger volume than the first bagand can also serve as a receptacle for receiving ejected stomachcontents for passengers suddenly experiencing motion sickness.

The bib and bag garment includes the first side that is worn by a personto shield food and/or oral contents released by that person fromgarments occupying the upper torso and to collect any food and/or oralcontents sliding off the first side into the material collection bag.Upon being removed from the person, rolled to a point of closure of thematerial collection bag, the material stowage bag is exposed and openedto create a stowage space suitable for receiving uneaten food, useddiapers or other trash item for convenient disposal.

This embodiment also concerns a disposable combination bib and baggarment protector having straps configured to secure around a neck of aperson, a first bag or a material collection bag located on a first sideand a second bag or a material stowage bag located on a second side. Theopening of the material collection bag is configured to aim towards thestraps and the opening of the material stowage bag is configured to aimaway from the straps. The bib and bag garment includes the first sidethat is worn by a person to shield food and/or oral contents released bythat person from garments occupying the upper torso and to collect anyfood and/or oral contents sliding off the first side into the materialcollection bag, thereby eliminating or minimizing the exposure of lowertorso garments and surrounding environments. The disposable bib and baggarment protector having any food and/or oral contents located withinthe material collection bag may be removed from the person, rolled to apoint of closure of the material collection bag, and exposing andopening up the material stowage bag to create a stowage space suitablefor receiving uneaten food, used diapers or other trash item forconvenient disposal.

Exemplary embodiments of the disposable combination bib and bag garmentprotector just described are called out in further detail with referenceto FIGS. 1-6 below.

FIG. 1 schematically depicts a top view of a front side 14 of acombination disposable bib and bag garment protector 10 with a front bag18 un-deployed. The front side 14 may include a decoration 22. In thisexample decoration 22 includes a stylized smiley face with the statementthat reads “I love my wonderful child!” Other decorations and/orinformation statement may be encompassed by the decoration 22. Theprotector 10 includes a first strap 26 and a second strap 28 configuredto tie around the neck of a user. The front bag or front container 18opens upward towards the front side 14 to catch food/slop or oral cavitymaterial that slides off the surface of the front side 14. A first bagedge 29 demarcates the face region of the front bag 18 that overlaysonto the front side 14. The first bag 18's front edge 29 is located nearthe bottom portion of the protector 10 or diametrically from the straps26/28. In alternate embodiments sticky tab closures (not shown) may beadded to the straps 26/28 to facilitate securing the protector 10 aroundthe neck. The sticky tab closures may be adhesive based.

FIG. 2 schematically depicts the front side combination bib and baggarment protector 10 with the front bag 18 deployed in the open positionto create a catching volume 30 to receive the food/slop and/or oralcavity contents that slide off the surface of the front side 14. Thefront edge 29 opens the front bag 18 to create the catching space orcatching volume 30.

FIG. 3 schematically depicts a perspective view of the front sidecombination bib and bag garment protector 10 with the front bag 18deployed in the open position to show another view of the collectionvolume 30.

FIG. 4 schematically depicts a perspective view from the child's orwearer's viewpoint of the front side combination bib and bag garmentprotector 10 with the front bag 18 deployed in the open position to showanother view of the material collection volume 30.

FIG. 5 schematically depicts a top view of a back side 54 of acombination disposable bib and bag garment protector 10 showing a backbag 58 un-deployed. A warning label 62 reads “Warning! Do not placeplastic on child's face. Danger of Suffocation. Never leave childunattended.” Different warning labels may be substituted, for example“Refrain from placing bag on face—risk of suffocation.” The back bag 58is the second bag or second container that serves to create a materialstowage volume or space 130 described in FIG. 6. The second bag 58'sback edge 129 is located near the bottom portion of the protector 10 ordiametrically from the straps 26/28. The second or back bag edge 129demarcates the face region of the second bag 58 that overlays onto theback side 54. The back edge 129 will open away from the straps 26/28.

FIG. 6 schematically depicts a perspective view of the back side 54 ofthe combination bib and bag garment protector 10 with the back bag 58 orback container 58 deployed in the open position in that the back edge129 is lifted upward to create a stowage space 130. The stowage space130 is demarcated by sealant line 100 that established the perimeter ofthe back bag 58. The back bag 58 may have a larger volume for receivingmaterials than the front bag 18 or from elsewhere. The stowage space 130illustrates (for example purposes) a diaper residing therein. Thestowage space 130 serves to receive disposable diapers or other trashfor convenient disposal.

The combination disposable bib and bag garment protector 10 may befolded in a compact volume and be individually packaged or packaged inmulti-pack groups, for example, 10 for a small package and 72 for alarger package. Other package combinations may be established. Thegarment protector 10 may be constructed of light weight, thin, foldableplastics, including biodegradable plastics, and be used in the home,restaurants, or travel industries. The combination dual purposefunctionality of the preferred embodiment eliminates the need for theparent or other caregiver to carry two separate items for the differentfunctions. Another advantage is that waste in manufacturing, materialsand disposal is thereby avoided.

While the preferred embodiment of the invention has been illustrated anddescribed, as noted above, many changes can be made without departingfrom the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, a singlepartition or multiple partitions may be included in the front bag 18 andthe back bag 58. Accordingly, the scope of the invention is not limitedby the disclosure of the preferred embodiment. Instead, the inventionshould be determined entirely by reference to the claims that follow.

1. A disposable garment protector wearable by a user comprising: a firstside having a material collection bag; a second side having a materialstowage bag transversally located from the material collection bag; andstraps to secure the first side outwardly to cover the upper torso ofthe user.
 2. The disposable garment protector of claim 1, wherein theopening to the material collection bag is configured to aim upwardstoward the straps.
 3. The disposable garment protector of claim 1,wherein the opening of the material stowage bag is configured to aimdownwards away from the straps.